Film

Published: Thursday, December 10, 1998

Thursday, December 10, 1998

Film

Disclaimer: The Daily Bruin staff was unable to screen many films released in December that might have otherwise made the top 10 list, including "The Thin Red Line," "A Simple Plan," "Shakespeare in Love" and "Prince of Egypt."

No. 1 - "Life is Beautiful"

Much has been made this year of a toned down Jim Carrey in the highly praised, yet flawed, "Truman Show." An even bigger surprise in 1998, however, came across the Atlantic from an actor who for all intents and purposes is known as the Italian Jim Carrey - Roberto Benigni.

A box office star in his native country with such films as "Johnny Stecchino" and "The Monster," most Benigni imports have failed to match his success abroad. Like Carrey, his previous films were low-brow, low-common denominator, low-quality. Even when working with indie icon Jim Jarmusch ("Down By Law," "Night on Earth"), Benigni's hyper-active and over-the-top performances were irksome and often detracted from the films themselves.

Thus, everyone was shocked when Benigni wrote, directed and acted in one of the most touching, bittersweet and romantic movies of the year, "Life Is Beautiful" ("La Vita e Bella"). Already taking the Grand Jury prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival and most recently Best Picture and Best Actor at the European Film Awards, "Life Is Beautiful" is bound to be a sleeper in this year's Oscar race.

Italian cinema has had a long and successful history of producing a bevy of films that leave audiences nostalgic. "Life Is Beautiful" throws a monkey wrench into the mix by using the same light-hearted, reminiscent tone seen in films ranging from "Amarcord" to "Cinema Paradiso" and "Il Postino," but sets it against the backdrop of the Holocaust. Some have criticized Benigni for having the gall to satirize such a horrific event. Others have worried about the historic liberties which the film has taken. But those looking for a disturbing "cinema verite" account of the Holocaust would do better watching Alain Resnais' "Night and Fog."

"Life Is Beautiful" does not purport itself to be a truthful account of this century's most horrific event. Instead, it is a fable which centers around the lengths one man would go to in order to shield his beloved son from the caustic environment surrounding him. In doing so, Benigni does not detract from the tragedy of the Holocaust, as some may argue, but makes the event even more painful by highlighting a family threatened to be torn apart forever. Nobody will ever confuse Benigni with a Fellini or a De Sica, but in a year devoid of notable films, "Life Is Beautiful" is one gem that has captured the hearts of audiences around the world.

Tristan Thai

No. 2 - "The Truman Show"

"The Truman Show" was an over-hyped movie that promised an impressive performance by Jim Carrey sans the rubber mask and cartoony premise. Inside-buzz went crazy for this film as it garnered immense kudos for its originality. That got our attention despite the uncharacteristically vague summary you wouldn't expect from a big summer film.

That was probably the point because you can't describe "The Truman Show" by some catchy tagline or a summary that takes one or two lines like the hordes of lame disaster flicks this summer. Instead, the film is a revelation, as biting and cynical as 1992's "The Player." Its satirical target is aimed at us, the duped public who fall prey to the mass media, as demonstrated by Truman.

The movie, a re-creation of a TV setting within a film setting has that deliberate copy-of-a-copy quality. Portrayed as the ideal American dream with a nice house, picket fence and glowing wife, Truman is living the life of a lovingly crafted '60s family sitcom.

Still, something isn't quite right. Everyone is trying too hard to make the setting right because they're getting paid to do that.

The more you look at it, the more you realize, "Hey, we're Truman!" We live in a country dictated by the suits on the umpteenth floor deciding how we should feel about their products. ABC and its ad campaign are telling us to watch TV because we have a lot of brain cells to burn, and then it implies that TV is the reason we haven't had WWIII. (You could take it as a joke, but why would they spend millions to make us laugh for a second?) It makes you wonder how dumb Hollywood thinks the public is.

The performances were thankfully strong in "The Truman Show." Carrey is primed to be a name in the betting pools come Oscar time. But even if he doesn't or the film gets no recognition for awards, you can think that Hollywood doesn't like to shoot itself in the foot.

Sandy Yang

No. 3 - "There's Something About Mary"

The sleeper hit of 1998, and perhaps the most raunchy mainstream comedy ever to hit theaters, "Mary" dared to push film crudity to a new high (or low).

No. 4 - "The Last Days of Disco"

Whit Stillman's tale of twentysomething swingers ringing in the 1980s showed audiences some fresh faces and completed the director's self-titled "Bourgeosie in Love" trilogy.

No. 5 - "Saving Private Ryan"

Steven Spielberg's film, perhaps the most impressive achievement in technical film-making of the '90s, introduced to the world not only the harsh realities of combat but also a new crop of young actors, including Barry Pepper, Jeremy Davies and some other actor named Matt Damon.

No. 6 - "The Opposite of Sex"

A tale of greed, insensitivity and homophobia told through the perspective of juvenile delinquent Christina Ricci, "Sex" delighted audiences with its raw, yet undeniably human, take on life.

No. 7 - "Bulworth"

With a re-release just before Oscar voting, it looks like Twentieth Century Fox had faith in "Bulworth". Despite earning only $26.4 million in the box office - and failing to find an audience - it was an amusing movie and worth the discounted student ticket price to go see it.

It seems that the American public expects corruption in the government and is not fazed by amoral politicians. Note the high public approval rating by Bill Clinton, and lack of public support for impeachment hearings. That's probably why few went to see this bitterly funny movie - no one seems to care about dishonest politicians these days.

Warren Beatty is excellent in his role as the incumbent state Sen. Jay Bulworth, struggling to win the election during the final campaign weekend of the 1996 California primary. From beginning to end, the movie is fast-paced, mixing comedic moments with a political message.

While undergoing a nervous breakdown, Bulworth arranges his own suicide, hires an assassin, and negotiates a large life insurance plan with a corrupt lobbyist to benefit his daughter.

Along the way, Bulworth finds out about the redeeming qualities that come from speaking honestly, and meets the beautiful Nina (Halle Berry) whose presence helps him see the oversights and mistakes he has made. Because of his newfound love of life, he doubts whether he really wants to go through with the suicide or make up for the wrongs he committed in life.

As he develops his political rapping abilities that Public Enemy might have once admired, Bulworth chooses honesty as his favorite policy, and the movie ends with a bang. You can't ask for much more than that.

A.J. Harwin

No. 8 - "Zero Effect"

If the title "Zero Effect" draws a blank among American audiences, blame Castle Rock Pictures. This film, hidden in theaters way back in February, was one of the most original American movies of the year, introducing the world of cinema to great new talent Jake Kasdan.

Unfortunately, lack of publicity from its parent studio caused "Zero Effect" to remain in obscurity, and only the most astute filmgoer even got a chance to see this fun, fresh and amusing comedy-mystery.

The film opens as Steve Arlo (Ben Stiller) explains to a potential client that his employer, private detective Daryl Zero (Bill Pullman, in the best performance of his career), is indeed the greatest private investigator the world has ever known. Able to solve any crime with a minimum of facts, Zero achieves his unique abilities through total detachment with the outside world. He remains a recluse in his snazzy Los Angeles apartment, leaving Arlo to carry out all of his affairs. Naturally, the prospective client (Ryan O'Neil) takes the case, and thus begins the most difficult and eye-opening case of Zero's career.

Though the plot is highly intricate and leads toward a satisfying conclusion, "Zero Effect" is that rare movie about people instead of story. By the time all the pieces have fallen in to place and the crime has been solved, we not only know who-dunnit, but we know Daryl Zero and understand how these events have changed his life.

The credit for bringing the film to life is split between Kasdan's wonderfully clever screenplay and the great performances of Stiller and Pullman, both proving (possibly for the first time) that they have considerable acting talent and could be trusted with more complex roles.

"Zero Effect" is the kind of movie that could have launched a franchise, had only Castle Rock had a bit more faith in it. It deserves to find its audience now on home video, as it was one of the best films of 1998.

Lonnie Harris

No. 9 - "The Big Lebowski"

The new film from the Coen Brothers certainly wasn't as ambitious as the duo's "Fargo" but did deliver some of the year's best comic performances from Jeff Bridges, John Goodman and especially John Turturro as a sexually confused bowler named Jesus.

No. 10 - "Mulan"

While Snow White, Cinderella and the Sleeping Beauty spent their days twirling around in ball gowns, Mulan sheds the fairy tale cliche for a soldier's uniform.

Despite the unamusing, jive-talking dragon voiced by Eddie Murphy, last summer's animated feature from the Mouse House stands on its own with a brave heroine of realistic body proportions who uses her wits to lead an entire army of men to victory.

Between the heartache that drives Mulan to fight in her father's place and the humor of her masquerade in drag, one forgets that the characters are simply hand-painted images.

A refreshing change of pace, "Mulan" also moves further away from narrative norms by not finding romance until the end with her beef-cake commanding officer Shang - one of few animated males to catch the eye of adult women, as well as little girls.

As a piece of visual art, the film showcases Disney's deft-touch with sweeping animation scenes such as the avalanche that buries alive hundreds of villainous Huns.

More importantly, Disney reaches beyond the mainstream European classics and ventures into new cultural territory by retelling a popular Chinese bedtime story which puts a new twist on feminism.

Terry Tang

Some film reviews compiled by Lonnie Harris

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